Tag: starter

Saints free agency rumors: Browns interested in signing Jameis Winston

The Boston Globe’s Ben Volin reports the Browns are interested in signing Jameis Winston as a backup quarterback, not a starter:

It’s too early to say that a market is developing for his services, but at least one team is seriously considering Jameis Winston as free agency takes shape: the Cleveland Browns, per the Boston Globe’s senior NFL reporter Ben Volin.

There’s just one thing. Volin reports that the Browns view Winston as a backup for starting quarterback Deshaun Watson, but Winston has been vocal about his desire to start games for a team, which he knows isn’t going to happen with Derek Carr entrenched on the New Orleans Saints.

Watson has strong job security in Cleveland, too, so if the only offers out there are backup gigs then it shouldn’t surprise anyone if Winston stays in New Orleans. Still, Watson missed most of the season with an injured throwing shoulder, and Winston could see this as an opportunity to get on the field if he misses more time.

So it’s something to watch for in the days ahead. Because of the way Winston’s contract is constructed, the Saints will need to release him with a post-June 1 designation if he’s going to leave and join another team, just like with Michael Thomas. If he intends to stay in New Orleans they’ll need to tear up his current deal and write a new contract. There are many moving parts this time of the year so expect more development in the days ahead.

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Raiders sign former Chiefs starter, Super Bowl champion Darius Harris

The #Chiefs saw one of their 2022 starters sign with an AFC West rival when LB Darius Harris agreed to terms with the #Raiders on Monday.

The Kansas City Chiefs saw one of their top starters in last year’s Super Bowl LVII championship campaign sign with an AFC West rival on Monday when linebacker Darius Harris agreed to terms on a contract with the Las Vegas Raiders.

Harris, a former Middle Tennessee State Blue Raider, is expected to be an early contributor in Las Vegas’ defense as the storied franchise looks to rebuild after the departure of quarterback Derek Carr in the offseason.

Details of Harris’ new deal are not yet known, but the contract isn’t expected to break the bank for the Raiders, who only have about $5 million in cap space according to overthecap.com.

The fourth-year linebacker made four starts for Kansas City last season, recording 43 combined tackles and tallying one and a half sacks in the Chiefs’ march to the playoffs. He wasn’t so productive in the postseason, though, only racking up four solo tackles in Kansas City’s three-game playoff effort.

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Buccaneers sign former Chargers OL Matt Feiler

Matt Feiler has found a new home with the Buccaneers.

The Chargers saw another player find a new team in free agency on Thursday when offensive lineman Matt Feiler agreed to terms on a new contract with the Buccaneers.

Feiler was cut by Los Angeles earlier in the offseason due to salary cap constraints, which allowed them to save a significant amount of money by parting ways.

Signed two offseasons ago, Feiler was solid in his first season as a Charger. However, he took a step back this past season. Feiler allowed six sacks, 40 quarterback pressures and 31 hurries.

 

Though he may not be a household name at this point in his career, Feiler has proven that he has all the tools necessary to be a consistent presence on any offensive line. The Buccaneers will benefit from his ability to mentor younger linemen next season.

Former Chiefs S Juan Thornhill bids Kansas City farewell in letter to fans

Juan Thornhill took to Twitter to express his gratitude to the #Chiefs after signing with the #Browns on Friday

The Kansas City Chiefs saw another starter on their 2022 championship roster leave for a new team on Thursday when safety Juan Thornhill inked a deal with the Cleveland Browns. In a letter to fans put out on Twitter yesterday, Thornhill thanked his teammates, coaches, and the Chiefs’ training staff for their hard work during his four years in Kansas City.

Chiefs Kingdom!!!

What a journey the past four years have been. In 2019, you guys took a chance on a small town kid from Virginia, and immediately embraced me as your own.

My time in Kansas City has been an absolute rollercoaster, from my rookie year and suffering a season ending injury, to winning our second Super Bowl this past year. I am beyond grateful for all the memories and years of support this city has given me. It’s hard to say goodbye to such a great city.

To my teammates, coaches, training & support staff, thank you all for making these past four years the greatest so far. Thank you guys for all the memories and friendships that will last forever. Growing up as a kid I have always dreamed of hoisting the Lombardi, we did to TWICE!!!

While this chapter of my life has come to an end, I am excited for what the future holds and to chase another Super Bowl in Cleveland. 

Thank you Chiefs Kingdom!

Though his departure is sure to sting for many Chiefs fans who grew accustomed to Thornhill’s presence in Kansas City, he is likely to get plenty of run with the Browns next season as a starter in Cleveland’s secondary.

With more attrition seemingly on the horizon for the Chiefs, the team’s front office will have to lick their wounds and pick up their pace in signing free agents to fill out their roster ahead of the NFL draft in April. The team is nowhere near the 90-man roster limit after the first week of free agency and has plenty of room to sign valuable talent that might be able to fill the gaps players like Thornhill are leaving in the Chiefs’ starting rotations.

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Charles Omenihu ready to embrace starting role with Chiefs

Asked about what makes him ready to be a starter in Kansas City, new #Chiefs DE Charles Omenihu said all of the right things.

The Kansas City Chiefs introduced the newest member of their defense on Thursday.

Charles Omenihu officially inked his deal with the team after agreeing to a deal with the Chiefs during the legal tampering period. He joins the Chiefs Kingdom after 1.5 years playing with the San Francisco 49ers, starting out there as a rotational pass-rusher. In Kansas City, there seems to be an expectation that Omenihu could play an every-down role. He has the versatility to play edge rusher on early downs and work on the defensive interior on key pass-rushing downs.

Omenihu was asked about what makes him ready for a chance to be a starter during his introductory press conference. His explanation should get fans really excited for the future.

“Just understanding the importance of playing the run,” Omenihu said. “It’s the first step of getting to the quarterback. My role with the (49ers), I mean, I played as much as a starter would. My first chance, stepping on the field, was to rush the quarterback. So, I just had that mode of getting to the quarterback or affecting the quarterback. But now, being in the game and having a chance to be a starter, I feel like I can more so set up guys so I don’t always have to go for the kill shot rush. I can set up guys and really play the long game.”

Omenihu is thinking about the big picture now. It’s not simply about getting to the quarterback every snap that he’s on the field. He has to earn the right to rush the passer by stopping the run and then eventually pick his moment to go for the kill.

This was something that Frank Clark was really exceptional at during the course of his Chiefs career. It’s why Clark had so many of those clutch performances in the postseason. Now it seems as if the newest member of the defense is attempting to follow in his footsteps with that same mentality.

“Once you set guys up and keep them off balance,” Omenihu concluded. “In my opinion, that’s when you can really dice people up and have multi-sack kind of games when you do that.

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Chargers’ 2022 season-in-review: Assessing the play of Los Angeles’ quarterbacks

The Chargers are in great shape at the quarterback position.

The quarterback position has never been as important as it is now across the NFL, and the Chargers have secured themselves a true franchise signal-caller in Justin Herbert.

His expert play in his third season as a professional football player helped Los Angeles achieve their first playoff berth since 2018 this season, though the outcome of their Wild Card matchup against the Jacksonville Jaguars left something to be desired.

For his part, though, Herbert’s performance was exceptional. Throughout the regular season, he threw for over 4,700 yards and 25 touchdowns while only being intercepted ten times. He was also the team’s third-leading rusher by yardage but could not find the end zone on the ground.

While he might not have lit up the stat sheet as he did in his first two seasons, Herbert still put the team in a position to win weekly, despite dealing with fractured rib cartilage for most of the season, missing multiple starters throughout the year, and being hamstrung by an offensive scheme that did not tailor to his strengths. Nevertheless, Herbert did take a massive leap as a leader of the team and solidified himself as the face of the franchise.

Behind Herbert on Los Angeles’ depth chart is journeyman backup Chase Daniel, who has carved out quite a career since 2010. Daniel did not make a start this season but made four appearances, throwing for 52 yards and a touchdown on 12 attempts, mostly in garbage time.

This output from their quarterbacks should enable the Chargers to focus on other areas of their roster in the offseason as they look to assemble a team that can be a legitimate contender in next year’s playoffs.

They will need to extend Herbert at some point shortly to ensure his place in Los Angeles for the long term. Still, outside of that piece of housekeeping, the Chargers are set at the most crucial offensive position except for his backup, which will need to be addressed, given Daniel and Easton Stick are set to be free agents.

Seahawks safety Josh Jones gets the nod to replace Jamal Adams

Seattle Seahawks safety Josh Jones plans to make the most of his opportunity to step up and start in place of the injured Jamal Adams.

The Seattle Seahawks suffered a major loss Monday night during their win over the Denver Broncos. Pro-Bowl safety Jamal Adams injured his knee and is likely headed for season-ending surgery. Always preaching the “next man up” mentality, coach Pete Carroll is confident in Josh Jones stepping up.

“I’ve been really pleased with Josh Jones,” Carroll said during his Wednesday press conference. “Josh has done nothing but positive stuff since the day he got here. Since then, he’s taken the next step and then the next step. Coming into this camp, he came back and had a great camp. He had the most turnovers and he had the most big plays and big hits of all of the guys. You saw him in the rotations already, he was already part of the plan”

After a less-than-stellar start to his career, Jones was actually on the brink of retirement this offseason until he recalled a conversation he had with Carroll last year ahead of the Cardinals game, mapping out a potential future in Seattle.

“Since that talk, everything has been a lot different in my life,” Jones told reporters. “Nobody has ever, especially a head coach, took the time out to ever truly understand me. For me to be transparent with him – he listened, he took it from his perspective, and he understood where I was coming from as well.”

Carroll reached out once again this spring about Jones re-signing with the Seahawks and the safety made the decision he was now all-in.

“Now, he just takes a bigger step forward,” Carroll continued. “He’s strong, he’s fast, he’s 220 pounds, he’s a big kid that plays the position with a really big motor, and he is a smart kid.

“He’s having a blast, so we are really happy to have him.” 

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Geno Smith never lost confidence in journey back to NFL starter

On Monday, Seattle Seahawks quarterback Geno Smith will become the first quarterback in 50 years to log an eight-gap between NFL starts.

On Monday night, Seattle Seahawks quarterback Geno Smith will become the first NFL quarterback in 50 years to log an eight-year gap between season-opening starts. Originally selected by the New York Jets in the second round of the 2013 NFL draft, Smith has had quite the journey back into the spotlight.

“It was just the hard work and I understand that there has been a gap,” Smith said during his Friday press conference. “But I’ve never lost confidence in my ability or the things that I can do on the field. My first two years I had some really great games and put a lot of great things on tape. But I was able to grow over that course of that time just being with Eli Manning and Philip Rivers and then obviously being here with Russell.”

Smith has now come full circle, preparing to square off Monday night against the quarterback he was relegated to back up over the last three seasons. For Smith, his time over the years on the bench was all about the valuable lessons learned.

“All three of them are Hall of Fame quarterbacks in my opinion,” Smith continued. “And being in the room with those guys and just learning football, being in different football systems, being around different coordinators, I was able to gain a ton of knowledge.

“That really was the most important thing to me other than anything else.”

Smith and his Seahawks are set to kick off against the Broncos Monday at 5:15 p.m. PT.

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Why Seahawks should shop QB Russell Wilson this offseason

An argument can be made for the Seattle Seahawks to shop quarterback Russell Wilson this offseason to see his value on the open market.

Because it’s the offseason and the Seattle Seahawks are coming off a particularly rough year, folks continue to debate whether or not the team should shop quarterback Russell Wilson and see what he could possibly command on the open market.

One argument is . . . the Seahawks have a proven starting signal-caller and most NFL teams are in need of exactly that, so why not see what type of capital they could receive in exchange?

“Retaining Russ would certainly not be a bad outcome; an elite QB always gives you a chance,” writes Cody Benjamin of CBS Sports. “But this is about resetting while the opportunity is ripe. It’s about taking the whole picture into account. Even coming off a down year that included surgery, is Wilson’s value going to be higher?”

Wilson is one of five starting quarterbacks Benjamin believes should be traded this offseason, including Matt Ryan. Despite Wilson’s current no-trade clause, Benjamin doubles down on his reasoning, which objectively makes sense.

“He’s 33, with a sterling Pro Bowl resume, and has pretty clearly been open to a move for at least a year,” he continues. “It’s the trade haul that could generate the next Super Bowl team that should motivate the Seahawks. If they can get multiple first-rounders, another pick or two, and perhaps even a young QB with Wilson similarities (think the Eagles’ Jalen Hurts), they’d be primed to rebuild.”

The 12s might not be in favor with Seattle parting ways with a fan favorite, but the move is definitely something the Seahawks’ front office could consider.

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Chiefs rookie Nick Bolton gets start in place of injured LB Anthony Hitchens

With #Chiefs LB Anthony Hitchens ruled out due to injury, rookie Nick Bolton is getting the start at MIKE against the #Titans in Week 7.

The Kansas City Chiefs have a new starter in the middle of the defense against the Tennessee Titans on Sunday.

The past three seasons under Steve Spagnuolo, there’s seldom been a game without Anthony Hitchens starting at the MIKE linebacker position. He’s been a constant as the defensive play-caller for Kansas City, getting the guys lined up in the right spots pre-snap. This week against the Titans, they’ll be without that constant.

Hitchens suffered an elbow injury during the first half of the Week 6 game against the Washington Football Team. He was spotted with his arm in a sling this week and ruled out of the game on Friday after missing the entire week of practice. There was some question about the players who would get the opportunity to call the defense in his absence. Would they go to second-year LB Willie Gay Jr. or veteran Ben Niemann in his absence? Well, it turns out they’re going with neither.

Rookie LB Nick Bolton, who leads the team in tackles with 40 (also the most among NFL rookies), will get the start in place of Hitchens. When he was selected this year in the second round of the 2021 NFL draft, Chiefs GM Brett Veach mentioned Bolton as a player who could backup Hitchens at the MIKE linebacker spot. He has mostly played the SAM and WILL linebacker spots so far this season, but he could be a natural fit in the middle of the defense.

This game could serve as a peek into the future when Kansas City will presumably move on from Hitchens. If Bolton shows progress in the new role, he might not give it up when Hitchens returns from injury. The Chiefs’ performance at the linebacker position has been severely lacking this season and any progress would be a welcomed change at this juncture of the season.

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